English Dub Review: Kaiju No. 8 “Kafka Hibino”
The structure of anime nowadays has been an absolute gamechanger. When I was a wee lad, shows just kept rolling. Shows like Dragon Ball kept rolling until for all eternity whereas in recent times, most shows have adopted a more seasonal approach when it comes to broadcasting because only so many people can watch a show for like 500+ weeks. The digestibility of shorter seasons make anime so much easier to consume because there is less fluff and the show gets to the point fast.
That said, Kaiju No. 8 personifies this change almost perfectly. A nice, 12 episode season with one coherent story thread just makes sense. The finale put an end to Kafka’s transition from bumbling idiot to Shonen main character, then plants the seeds for what’s to come in season 2. There are a lot of things to get excited over, so let’s get into it.
“Kafka Hibino” puts you right back in where “Kaiju No. 8 Captured” left off with the fight between Director General Shinomiya and Kafka just as the kaiju takes over and starts to take control. You can tell by the expressions from everyone in the chamber that Shinomiya is in serious trouble. No. 8 has taken full control and is just using the Director General as a punching bad. In fact, the writers took inspiration from The Avengers by having No. 8 start slamming the Director General around like The Hulk slamming Loki around in Stark Tower. Kafka getting control at the absolute last second got Shinomiya to prove that Kafka can control the monster inside.
What was really interesting was the added scenes with his teammates in 3rd Division, all trying to figure out what’s happening with Kafka, and later celebrating him finishing this on his own. It’s the little things like these scenes that help flesh out the story and make it seem like Kafka was going through this on his own. In fact, seeing Mina crack a smile as she left the headquarters was really heartwarming.
As I stated in the opening, there wasn’t a lot of sitting around and waiting for the finale. The fight ended, and we got a resolution for the season. Then we got the setup for season 2. Kafka went from lazy loser to the biggest asset the Japanese Defense Force can possibly dream of. He did that on his own. It was awesome to see his growth as a person, and his ability to grow with his power.
“Kafka Hibino was a fantastic ending. The fight and the suspense of what was going to happen to Kafka after taking Shinomiya to town was expertly done. The animation and effects were on point. Even the post fight exposition wind down was great, with Shinomiya visiting Kafka, telling him his fate personally. This is the first time Shinomiya showed any sort of warmth or humanity, even through the “you’re still a kaiju” speech.
This is the first time I felt relief for a season finale in forever. It wasn’t like getting the sweet release of death type of relief, but more of a running five miles and feeling accomplished type of relief. I expected a great finale considering how amazing the first season has been. I have no idea when to expect season two, but it can’t come soon enough.
I hope this turns out to be another Gravity Falls-type show with an overarching storyline.